ERYTHROCYTE ROSETTES - MARKER FOR BOVINE T CELLS

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  • 1 January 1976
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 40  (3) , 298-305
Abstract
Many species of erythrocytes [human, monkey, dog, cat, horse, sheep, goat, pig, guinea pig, mouse, rat, rabbit, chicken] were investigated for their ability to form spontaneous rosette with bovine peripheral blood leukocytes and fetal thymocytes. Only sheep and chicken red blood cells gave rosettes. Using optimal conditions for the demonstration of human rosette forming cells, only low numbers of bovine rosettes were demonstrable. By changing culture conditions to include 100% fetal calf serum, neuraminidase treated erythrocytes and/or lymphocytes and optimizing the incubation times and temperature, up to 38% of peripheral blood leukocytes and 52% of thymocytes formed rosettes. A thymic origin of rosetting cells was acribed to T [thymus-derived] cells for the following reasons: thymocytes gave higher numbers than did peripheral blood leukocytes; rosette forming cell numbers were increased in peripheral blood leukocyte subpopulations enriched in T cells by nylon column separation; only very few rosette forming cells had surface immunoglobulin, a marker of B [bone marrow-derived] lymphocytes. The reasons all T cells were not detected by the technique were discussed.